Statement on Germaine Greer lecture event at Brighton Dome

The Marlborough Pub and Theatre is a recognised hub for LGBTQ+ people and in particular, for the trans community, in the heart of Brighton. The pub is the home of trans pride and the theatre supports LGBTQ+ performance all year round. We have worked in partnership with Brighton Dome for over 5 years and have been heartened by the organisation’s commitment to provide high profile platforms for queer artists, co-hosting trans artists such as Justin Vivian Bond and Kate Bornstein. Most recently, our installation The Safety Map, which documents the threats faced by trans people and the hate crimes they have suffered in Brighton & Hove, was featured in the Dome Café highlighting the critical importance of places of safety.
We are therefore profoundly concerned about the impact that the proposed Germaine Greer lecture event for International Women’s Day will have on the communities we work with, and on the goodwill and trust that the Marlborough/Dome partnership has worked so hard to achieve.
Greer’s history of transphobic hate speech is well-documented and her attitude towards critique of these view is unapologetic. Many people, including us, find her words denigrating and alarming. Many people, including us, believe her choice of language fuels hatred among aggressive transphobic people and so constitutes a real threat to the community’s safety and well-being.
In the spirit of Brighton Dome’s well-publicised commitment to equality, and as a mark of respect for Brighton’s much-valued transgender community, we therefore urge the Dome to reconsider staging this event.
We are proud to stand with our community in solidarity.
The Marlborough Pub & Theatre
More information and a petition can be found here: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/318/502/093/transphobes-not-welcome-in-brighton-germaine-greer/?taf_id=33744534&cid=twitter#bbfb=731731921